


Waterlogged

by CelestialCepha



Category: No Straight Roads (Video Game)
Genre: 1010 is named, Angst, Drowning, technically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-12
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:15:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26418559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CelestialCepha/pseuds/CelestialCepha
Summary: In which Blanche learns a very valuable lesson in following orders.
Comments: 7
Kudos: 146





	Waterlogged

**Author's Note:**

> This is an extended version of an angsty drabble I wrote for the NSR server. Listen to your aquaphobic dad when he says to stay away from water, folks!

Blanche fidgeted in front of the door, with his brothers behind impulsively mimicking his actions. Their mission was simple: go into Neon J's office and secure waterproofing upgrades. They had wanted them for a while, but approaching their captain was never an easy task. The boys took a moment to steel their courage, and Blanche opened the door slowly as not to disturb Neon J. He immediately looked up from some paperwork he was doing, his sonar picked up on them the moment they entered the hall. The group files into his office, standing at attention somewhat nervously.  
"At ease, boys. What is it?  
Some of their shoulders sag in relief, and it's a moment before Azu speaks up first. "Captain, we'd like to ask for a favor!" Neon J tilts his head as if to say "Go on," and with his voice lost Azu turns to Blanche to voice their wish.  
"We...we want upgrades to be waterproofed, sir!"

The silence that fell upon the room was heavy enough to crush a can, the gentle pinging coming from their blips on his sonar suddenly going silent. Blanche shifts nervously, but he keeps his eyes on NJ as he awaits his response.  
"No."  
"B-but, we--"  
"I said, no."  
"Why not? We're tired of having to be so cautious in our own home! It makes sense to do it!" Azu's voice rings out from behind Blanche. "We could do a beach photoshoot! It'd be great!" Pula chimed in, and Blanche rolled his eyes at him. "We live right on a beach…Jade and I want to collect shells! We could all go out together sometime!" Amar adds on to their list of reasons, with Jade nodding in agreement. Looking back at his brothers, Blanche nods and faces their captain. "See? There's no reason not to! Why do you always act like we'll explode if we so much as touch water-"  
"ENOUGH!"  
His voice is laced with anger, it's enough to make them all flinch in sync.  
"Cease this talk of the sea right this instant! It is not your friend, do you understand?! I will not allow any of you to touch those accursed shores!”  
“B-but, captain--”  
“Do not ask me about this again. That is an ORDER!”  
They all shuddered as soon as the word left his mouth. A direct order from their captain was to be followed without question, and they all shrunk back. They’ve never seen him this angry and they’re frankly scared, and when he waves a hand to dismiss them they shuffle out without a word. Unbeknownst to them, Blanche has other plans in the face of failure.

\---

“You’re going to do WHAT?!”  
Pula cried out in disbelief, staring at his brother in shock. “I’m going to sneak out,” he stated quietly, “And I’m going to prove to him that it’s safe.” Jade fidgeted, nervously starting to sign to him. “We don’t want you getting in trouble...he probably has a reason, you know he looks out for us.” Blanche huffed, casting his irritated glare at the floor. “He’s being too stubborn! What’s the worst that could even happen, I get sand in my joints? I’m going whether you guys agree with me or not.” The group shares a worried glance, it’s hard to stop Blanche when he has his heart set on something...but at the very least, he’s agreed to not stay out for long and he’d tell them about everything he saw.

It was hard initially to override his programming that kept him inside the gates of the mansion, but once he was out it shocked his very core. Moonlight glitters off of clear blue waves, and a gentle sea breeze tousled his hair. It only took a few sneak out sessions for him to fall in love with the beach and what was beyond it, and it didn’t take much convincing to get his brothers to agree. Blanche decides that the sea isn't so bad, how could Neon J hate it so much? The shells that washed up were pretty, and the view alone was enough to win anyone’s heart over. Tonight’s session was going to be his final and most daring yet- boating. Commandeering a boat was easy, and he was looking forward to telling the others about his trip. NJ couldn’t refuse him after this!  
The day was a bit cloudy, but he wasn't worried as he sailed out over the waves. However, not too long after he heads out a storm rolls in, and things quickly turn bad as the rainfall makes it hard for him to navigate. It also makes the deck slippery and his movements stunted, and he slips off into dark and unforgiving water in his attempts to get back to shore.  
His systems don't shut down immediately, and he’s not sure if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. He sinks for a good few minutes, flailing and struggling to make it back to the surface but he's not made to swim…water soon breaches his more important circuits and he shuts down, the last thing he feels is panic and fear, he’s never going to see his family again is he?

\--

The boys back home are restless, they knew he went out but he didn't come back at the time he promised. NJ knows something's wrong, because Blanche’s blip on his screen suddenly vanished. He knew he went out at times, but he didn't know where….stepping out of his office, he finds 1010 milling around in the living room.  
“Boys, where’s Blanche?”  
None of them respond to his question, and they also refuse to directly look at him. Something’s certainly off, and the lazy swirling of his sonar grows faster as he desperately tries to locate Blanche. It takes a direct order from him to get them all to shamefully point at the window, out at the turbulent sea. In an instant, he knows exactly what became of his son. They've never seen him move that fast, he's out of the mansion like a shot and rushing towards the beach wondering just how he managed to overcome his programming, and why he didn't try to stop him sooner. His movements stop at the shore when he sees a lone boat bobbing in the water, with no one at the helm. If anyone could see him, his screen was entirely black. It's as if every nightmare that's plagued him came true all at once, and he's spurred to action as thunder booms overhead. The last thing the rest of 1010 sees of their captain is him fearlessly diving into the cold water.

\---

Blanche wakes up with a jolt on a cold, steely surface. He's on the table in what they call their "repair room," it's where they go for routine maintenance by NJ. What was he doing here? His memories were a bit fuzzy...it’s like he just transferred himself into a new body. He sits up and looks around, going to greet one of his brothers in a nearby chair when he realizes that it's not them.  
It's his own body. Eyes hollow and lights dark, there's seaweed stuck in some of his joints and seawater drips from his body. With this garish sight he flinches, his missing memories clicking back into place. That's right, he stole one of NJ's supposedly "decorative" boats for a fun day out at sea, and....wait, where was he at? He looks away from his old body, no longer comfortable with it as he realizes Neon J has been with him the whole time. He's turned away, standing stiffly and in pure silence with his hands crossed behind his back. He hasn't moved since he woke and he's made no effort to speak to him....Blanche realizes the shame in his actions and it takes him a moment to find his words.  
"D-dad, I--"  
NJ turns his screen only slightly, which is enough to make him stop speaking altogether. There's nothing but silence for a while, but when he does speak, White notes his tone. He sounded different now, his voice was clearer now than it ever has been with not a trace of robotic undertones nor autotune. He didn't sound mad, he sounded....broken.  
"Why couldn't you have stayed here, where you would've been safe?"


End file.
